PreK/Kindergarten
Visual Arts in PreK/Kindergarten serves as a building block for further visual arts instruction. The curriculum places an emphasis on cognitive, affective, sensory and motor development using a problem-solving approach. Students learn that art is a personal expression, has value, teaches about other times and places and connects to other areas of learning. Students grow to understand that their works of art are unique and valuable.

First Grade
The First Grade Visual Arts curriculum serves as a continuation of visual arts instruction. The standards continue to emphasize that the visual arts are about ideas. Development continues in cognitive, sensory, affective, and motor domains. Standards will continue to emphasize the language of art. Art production will focus on increased communication, self-expression, and the depiction of stories and events. Students will learn that people have different responses to the visual arts.

Second Grade
The Second Grade Visual Arts curriculum serves as a continuation of visual arts instruction. The standards focus on the acquisition of a reservoir of ideas for art making. Students will acquire ideas from their own experiences, their school, their communities, the environment, and the art of other cultures. Students will express these ideas, using an increasing variety of art materials, skills, techniques, and processes.

Third Grade
Art in grade three emphasizes learning through inquiry. Students will examine aspects of the artistic process: idea generation, problem solving and self-assessment. Students will investigate the integral role of art and architecture within ancient cultures; and they will combine knowledge of ancient art and architecture, effective artistic processes and skills and a variety of ideas to produce works of art.

Fourth Grade
Visual arts in grade four continues to emphasize the elements of art and the principles of design as the basic building blocks for art appreciation and production. Students will explore a range of materials and subject matter. Art historical emphasis is on the artists, events and environment in Virginia from colonial times to the present. Students will examine the influence of the past on contemporary culture.

Fifth Grade
In fifth grade visual arts, students to use their knowledge and skills to synthesize information, thus allowing them to produce and respond to works of art. Emphasis is on communication of personal values and beliefs in art appreciation and production. Study relates to art produced by cultures from Pre-Columbian times to 1877. Students will gain fluency in using and understanding the elements of art and the principles of design as they relate to artistic expression and communication.

The Music Standards of Learning for kindergarten through grade five introduces basic music concepts through singing, playing instruments, moving, and listening. Students will gradually develop their singing voices, a repertoire of songs, and a sense of rhythm beginning with the steady beat and continuing toward complex rhythms and meters. Movement experiences are included as a means of demonstrating an understanding of concepts such as pitch, rhythm, and form. Listening experiences include traditional and contemporary classical works, American folk music, and music of other cultures. Through these experiences, students will have the opportunity to demonstrate and apply an understanding of music concepts.